Most Venerable Bhante Walpola Piyananda's 80th Birthday Celebrating - Collected Essays

they were the teachers, guides and even the advisors to kings. Nobody
was bold enough to speak up against their ways.
Therefore, the caste system, which had been created by
Brahmins, was reigning all over India. If any person – whether man,
woman or child – of the so-called lower castes was suffering or even
dying of hunger, thirst or disease by the roadside, no one of high caste
would go near or cause another to help; they would only turn their
head and go on their way. A thirsty man of the so-called low caste was
not allowed to take a little water from a well used by those of the high
caste. They were not allowed to hear or learn the Vedas, the religion of
those of the high caste. If even one line of the Vedic texts was spoken
by one of the low caste, the Brahmins had permission to cut out their
tongue. If any of the low caste should hear the Vedas, his ears were
bored with an iron spike making him deaf for the rest of his life. It was
in such a society that the Buddha happened to travel and teach. He
rose up and boldly stated that a person did not become a Brahmin or
noble by birth; that it was only by one’s character or moral conduct that
one became high or low. Among his disciples, the majority were those
who belonged to royal and Brahmin families. Many were also from the
families of the merchant or farmer caste. The Buddha also admitted
men of the lowest or Candala caste into his order, and had them live
among the high castes as members of the same family. A great change
occurred in that society when even kings and Brahmins paid respect,
bowing down at the feet of monks who had belonged to the Candala
caste. The lives of Sopaka and Sunita are examples of two such men
who became the Buddha’s monks.
Women had no freedom before the Buddha’s appearance in
that society. A woman of any caste was just like a slave in most parts
of the country. The Buddha’s teachings made a great change in this
system too. Consequently, there arose lay female devotees as well
as nuns who were versed in the Dhamma; some became teachers and
preachers – even to royal families.
To think and speak freely has been a crime in many countries,
and in Medieval Europe it was severely punished, as in the Inquisition.
In every country where Buddhism gained a foothold, there has been –
and still exists today – full freedom of thought and speech. The Buddha
brought this to the world for the first time. It is very clearly seen in the
incident described in the Brahmajala Sutta of the Digha Nikaya.
One day, some monks, disciples of the Buddha, were
discussing how an ascetic’s disciple disputed with his teacher. The
Buddha surprised the monks with a visit and asked them the nature of
their conversation. They said, “Lord, last evening we overheard words
between the mendicant teacher and his disciple Brahmadatta. While
Brahmadatta was praising the Buddha, his teachings and his disciples,
his mendicant teacher was condemning the Buddha, his teachings and
his disciples. We were just conversing on their disagreement.” The
Buddha responded by saying:
“Monks, if outsiders should speak against me, against my
teaching, or against my disciples, you should not be angry or hold that
against them. For if you were angry with them, how would you know
if they were right or wrong?
“And also, if outsiders should praise me, my teachings or my
disciples, you should not be pleased or proud. For if you were pleased
or proud, how would you know if they were over praising us?
“Therefore, whether people speak for or against me, my
teaching or my disciples, be neither proud nor angry. Rather, be
impartial, and acknowledge it if they are right or calmly explain where
they are wrong. Furthermore, both anger and pride would hamper your
own spiritual development.”
On another occasion when the Buddha visited the town of
the Kalamas; they came to him and said that they were confused by
contradictory views in the various teachings they had heard from
various teachers. They could not remove the doubts that had arisen
from these contradictions. In this case, the Buddha advised them:
“Do not be led by reports, tradition or hearsay. Do not accept a
thing merely because you find it is in a religious text, or merely because
it is proved by logic or inference, nor because it is said by a saintly
guru. Do not depend on mere speculations, or seeming possibilities.
Use your reason and see whether it will be beneficial. Put it to the test;
then if it proves beneficial, accept it and follow it.”
The Buddha did not urge even his disciples to accept something
merely because he had said it. Thus, for the first time in the religions of
the world, the Buddha opened the gate to free thinking and independent
investigation. The Buddha emphasized in his teachings that one should
practice what one teaches and teach what one practices (yathāvādi
tathākāri, tathāvādi yathākāri ). He was the prime example of this.
Among the world teachers, no one was more attentive to the
well-being of his disciples than the Buddha. When a monk or monks
traveled far to see him, his first question to them was about their journey;
was it difficult, and did they get sufficient food and other necessities
along the way? And he would also ask them about their health. The
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